Back To Work

 

Back To Work

In My Bloodstream: Lisinopril,  Amlodopine,  Omeprazole, Tamsulosin

On The Stereo: Can't Knock Me Down: Featuring Anna Mae (Pink Panther)

Having ducked the previously scheduled surgeries for a few weeks, and having zero negative effects from lymphoma, I had been feeling the best I have been for years.  Other than regular older people stuff, like deteriorating discs in my lower back, I have been basically pain-free.  I have had no wounds to heal and no bloody messes to irritate me. 

The surgeries which were postponed, began last Tuesday.  Back to the grind again.  My two months reprieve are in the rear view mirror.  And disappearing by the day.

I am recovering well from the first two excisions, and have even played golf, despite the protestations of the surgeon, who believed I should wait several weeks before doing so.  He told me that it takes 50 days for a body to recover to the same point it was, prior to the operation.  Who has that much time to waste? Certainly not me.  Not now.  Not ever.

Spidey, in a recurring role, checks to see if the bandages on my arm, are lifting, in an attempt to fall off on their own, as the surgeon predicted.  I did not show you the other wound site on my thigh, for reasons of modesty.  Three week hiatus until we take a run at the right side of my body, and three more excisions.

Our time off over the summer, was much needed.  Like most of you, I'm sure, the isolation was proving to be tiresome.  We were fortunate, Kath and I, to be able to enjoy each other, and our time together.  The teacher had been working every day for the past school year, and she welcomed a return to domesticity.  I was more than happy to have her to myself for a couple of months.

My bride continues to manage her psoriatic-arthritis.  Her injections are every two weeks, but their effectiveness sharply deteriorates after ten days.  She struggles with migrating pain and plain old discomfort for those few days.  Pain meds and her always cheerful spouse manage to drag her through the worst of it.  I  made her promise to discuss this with her doc and hopefully reduce the time between shots to ten days, which she did, but he wants her to continue as she has been doing.  So, her tough sledding will continue for a few days every couple of weeks.  

 

I am somewhat apologetic, inasmuch as we pretty much have it made in the shade right now, and the pandemic has been, at most, a mild inconvenience to us.  And I know that for some, these days are terribly difficult.  Loneliness and financial stress can be the cause of health concerns, which can be every bit as dangerous as smoking, and drug or alcohol abuse.  Many are struggling.  Often quietly, and alone.  

We do need friends.  And we need to talk to them and see them.  We all need to reach out and maintain some connection.  When we feel out of sorts with life, don't be afraid to lean on a friend or family member. It amazes me how much better I feel, each time I share a conversation with a friend. (As I am writing, I get a call from David St. Hilaire, a long-time buddy, and my day is made even better.) 

I know certain of my friends, and many others, unknown to me, are in the midst of some type of aporia.  That is, knowing that all is not well around us, but not having the skill or resources to do anything about it.    I often think of  those who are managing real life personal issues and hope that they try to remain positive.  Easy advice to give, I know.  Somehow, and someday, exigent times do pass.  We need to keep looking for the upside.  Living a good life does not mean living an easy life.  

 Given my own health and personal history, I am somewhat of an unwilling expert in these matters.  Every tomorrow needs a chance to heal our wounds.  I honestly look forward to every new day.  Happy to be alive and thankful for my family and friends.  And mostly, to share the day with my child bride.

Most of you are aware that we are still in the grip of Covid 19 and only two months from a presidential election.  Personally, I believe the unending assaults by the media on both of those fronts, have the power to make a person ill.  And just might, if you let them.

We have limited our TV time news and keep the television off for most of the day.  A movie after dinner is common in this household.  My friend has become a hockey fan again.  

                                                                     For my Canadian friends 

She stopped watching hockey while we were in Tuscaloosa.  Football became her passion.  And will remain so for life, I think.  I guess so.

 And I am also happy to see real golf on the weekends.  If that is considered a sport.  A friend (Jeff French, I think) once declared that if you can play any game with a cigarette in your mouth, then it definitively cannot be considered a sport. Curling would be another which comes to mind.   However, both Kat and I enjoy watching the pros play for a few hours on the weekends.  Entertainment with little stress.  (And we can watch it with a drink in one hand and a snack in the other)  Again, not a sport.

Much of television, with its ultra-loud ads and constant viewer harassment has the ability to wear a body down.  You can find yourself staring at a television screen playing some inane commercial, and have no idea why.

To maintain a modicum of sanity, I suggest that you do not let perpetual pounding of political television ads and the bleak forecasts of our future under a pandemic, beat you down.  These too will pass.  Not soon enough for me, but they will.  In the meantime, turn the TV off and listen to music.  Any music.  Sing along.  At some point, you will feel better.  It just happens.

In closing, I don't know how many of you check out my musical recommendations, but I try, mostly, to make the music reflect the story.  I intend there to be an attachment.  For those of you who are in a health battle, especially, please check this one out. It is a battle cry.  It is now being used in the Moffitt Cancer Center ads.  It won't disappoint. 

Thank you.  Nice to be involved in your lives again.  And I will never take your friendship for granted.  Promise.

See you next week